Dural arteriovenous fistula of the hypoglossal canal treated with endovascular embolization using 3D Slicer-based preoperative planning: Case report

Hypoglossal canal dural arteriovenous fistulas (HC-dAVFs) are rare skull base vascular lesions with complex venous drainage. We report a case of a 52-year-old man who presented with 6 months of left-sided pulsatile tinnitus, sleep disturbance, and anxiety....

No actionable change for routine audiology practice; this is a rare neurovascular case report relevant to ENT/neurosurgery, though audiologists should recognize pulsatile tinnitus as a potential red flag requiring vascular workup.

This case highlights the value of advanced preoperative imaging software (3D Slicer) in planning endovascular treatment of rare causes of pulsatile tinnitus, reinforcing the need for audiologists to refer pulsatile tinnitus cases for vascular imaging.

1. 01Single case report: 52-year-old man with a hypoglossal canal dural arteriovenous fistula (abnormal skull-base blood vessel connection).
2. 02Presenting symptoms likely included pulsatile tinnitus (a heartbeat-like sound in the ear).
3. 03Treatment: endovascular embolization (minimally invasive blockage of abnormal vessels).
4. 043D Slicer open-source software used for detailed preoperative anatomical planning.
5. 05Relevance to audiology is limited to differential diagnosis of pulsatile tinnitus.

PMID

42289889

DOI

10.7461/jcen.2026.E2026.03.001.

Journal

Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology

Publication type

case_report

Evidence level

4

Sample size

1

Population

Single patient: 52-year-old male with hypoglossal canal dural arteriovenous fistula

Intervention

Endovascular embolization guided by 3D Slicer-based preoperative planning